KTRE Reports on “Superfan and Son”

WILLIAMSPORT, PA (KTRE) – A Lufkin man and his son have each made it to the Little League World Series as spectators, but each have competed to get there in life and overcome the odds.

In 2008, Brent Slaton and his wife witnessed the birth of their son, Mack. Mack was born at 29 weeks into his mother’s pregnancy and weighed less than three pounds.

In 2014, Slaton learned he had contracted scleroderma, an extremely rare autoimmune disease which affects the body’s stem and organs.

In prior cases like these, there are times where neither father nor son would be alive today. But each is very much alive and living it up right now in Williamsport.

Slaton serves on the Lufkin Little League board and his son is friends with players on the team.

“When we went to the state game in Houston and we realized how we stacked up, we knew we had a chance to go to Williamsport,” Slaton said. “My son was very pumped and said, ‘if they win, we’re going.’ And I said ‘ok.'”